Major new move after Rex collapse
Written by admin on August 5, 2024
The Albanese government will shake up access to Sydney airport after the collapse of regional airline Rex last week was partially blamed on the hoarding of slots at the country’s biggest airport.
Transport Minister Catherine King will on Monday open a competitive tender process to appoint a new manager of Sydney airport’s timeslots, which are currently managed by a company majority owned by Qantas and Virgin Australia.
The slot manager allocates the windows in and out of the country’s biggest and most lucrative airport.
The government earlier this year announced reforms, which are still to be introduced to parliament, including changing the allocation process to free up more slots and changing the definition of a new entrant to make it easier for new airlines to obtain time windows.
Under the tender process to be announced on Monday, prospective slot managers will have to demonstrate how they will manage and mitigate conflicts of interest.
The government wants to increase competition in the Australian aviation sector, but it denies Monday’s announcement is a direct response to Rex.
But the opposition said the government had been too slow on reform.
“It’s extraordinary that it’s taken the failure of an airline as important as Rex for Catherine King to move on something so important as competition in the airline industry,” opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume told Sky News Australia on Monday.
“Let’s not forget that it was only 12 months ago that we discovered that Qatar Airways had been blocked from additional slots … that would’ve provide an additional 28 flights to Australia … which would have brought the prices of airlines down.”
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After attempts to compete with Qantas and Virgin Australia and tap into metropolitan markets, Regional Express entered voluntary administration on Tuesday evening.
While flights to and from regional cities will continue, Boeing 737 jets flying between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane immediately ceased operations.
Rex’s collapse comes just three months after regional carrier Bonza fell victim to Australia’s heavily concentrated aviation industry after only 15 months in operation.
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